Teaching your teen to drive can bring out a lot of emotions such as fear, uncertainty, and even sadness. Seeing your teen start driving and becoming even more independent can be hard, but remember how you felt as a teen and recognize that it’s an important part of life and growing up. During this time, the most significant thing that you can do as a parent is to teach them the skills and knowledge that they need to be confident and safe drivers.
While it may be hard to see them driving on their own, knowing that you’ve taught them to be safe and smart on the roads can help bring you peace of mind and make this milestone more comfortable for you both.
1. Focus on Comfort
Not all teens are so eager to get behind the wheel, and it’s important that you consider your teen’s comfort level. While some might be ready to hit the road to get all of their permit hours as soon as possible, others might be more cautious and feel more comfortable taking their time. You might actually hope that your teen takes this approach!
However, regardless of which approach your teen takes, make sure to never try to push them past what they feel comfortable doing, and similarly, don’t try to hold your teen back if they want to get up and learn.
2. Emphasize Safe Driving
Many teens may think that accidents will never happen to them, and at their age, many even feel invincible. This makes emphasizing safety even more important. The best way to do this is by constructively using some facts to help show them that accidents can happen more frequently than they might think.
For instance, there are 16,438 car accidents every day in the United States and around six million every year. From these accidents, 20 to 50 million people end up injured or disabled, and 1.25 million people die.
Now, don’t present these facts as a scare tactic. The point isn’t to traumatize your kids away from driving. However, it is important to show them the responsibility that driving entails. All drivers are responsible for not only their safety but the safety of their passengers and other drivers that they share the road with.
3. Drunk Driving and Distracted Driving
These days, it seems like cell phones are an extension of many teenagers and, more often than not, they are glued to their phones. Because of this, distracted driving is a prevailing danger and it contributes highly to the number of fatal teen crashes that occur every year.
As parents, you can help teach your teen the importance of never looking at their phones while driving, and you should model this behavior yourself every time you are behind the wheel.
Similarly, while underage drinking is illegal, teens are notorious for seeking out the things they’ve been told not to do. CDC statistics even show that out of the 26+ million drivers in California, 1.8% admit to driving after drinking too much.
While it’s important to teach your children the importance of never driving under the influence, you should also emphasize that if they ever find themselves in a situation where they have had alcohol, that they can always call you to pick them up. Being open and understanding with your teens can not only help keep them safe, but it can make them more likely to come to you when they need help.
4. Be Patient
Teaching your child to drive requires a lot of patience and you should never yell or scold them while they are learning. While it can be nerve-wracking, try your best to stay calm, and if they make a mistake, tell them how they can avoid it in the future.
Although 15% of American adults have some sort of hearing loss, chances are screaming at your child will only make them more nervous to drive and less confident behind the wheel. Calm, clear instruction is always best and it will allow both of you to enjoy the time you spend together in the car.
While seeing your teen getting ready to drive can be an emotional time, trust that you have raised them to make the best decisions they possibly can. This, coupled with your instruction as they learn, can help make them safe and confident drivers once they take to the roads on their own.
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